Andermani Empire
The Andermani Empire was a multi-system star nation under an imperial government, led by an Emperor. Although smaller than the Solarian League or the Republic of Haven, and technologically inferior to Manticore, the Andermani were a formidable presence. In addition to a powerful navy, they possessed an excellent intelligence service. Although large parts of the population were of ethnic Chinese descent, their official language was German, and many aspects of their culture were German-influenced as well. Star Geography The Andermani Empire's capital world was the planet Potsdam, formerly known as Kuan Yin, located in the New Berlin System. The Empire was bordered by the Silesian Confederacy to the northeast, the Star Kingdom of Manticore to the southeast, Midgard to the northwest, and Asgard to the southwest. Star systems By 1900 PD, the Andermani Empire controlled twenty-one star systems, ( ) including: * New Berlin System – capital system, one of six initial systems * Nimbalkar System - one of six initial systems (MA1) * Tomlinson System - one of six initial systems (MA1) * Sligo System – the most populated system (HH6) * Durandel System – site of an Asgard Wormhole Junction terminus * Gregor System – site of a Manticore Wormhole Junction terminus * Mischa's Star System * Irrlicht System Silesian dependencies * naval base in the Sachsen System History The Andermani EmpireIt is sometimes called the "Anderman Empire" in the early novels. was founded by Gustav Anderman, a highly successful mercenary who had a shrewd business sense. During one of his operations, he came across the planet Kuan Yin, settled centuries earlier by colonists of Chinese descent. The planet had seemed perfect for colonization upon the initial survey, but it had a native microorganism that proved deadly to terrestrial crops. The colonists had arrived on a sublight "sleeper ship" and therefore could not return or relocate to a different planet. As a result, the population of Kuan Yin was facing the very real threat of extinction when Anderman's fleet moved in. Anderman brought in modern microbiologists and genetic engineers to produce crops which were immune to the microorganisms, saving the people of Kuan Yin, who were quite willing to accept him as Emperor. They also embraced Gustav's "Prussian heritage" (he believed himself to be the reincarnation of Frederick the Great): the planet was officially renamed Potsdam. With this highly loyal population base, the Andermani Empire was born in the 16th Century PD. Over the centuries since founding, the Empire slowly acquired more planets. While technically expansionist, it only annexed systems that were agreeable to join, either because of the economic and military benefit of joining the Empire, or because they were in some sort of trouble. This was in contrast to the Solarian League or the People's Republic of Haven, which routinely engineered situations in order to seize systems. Once a system joined the Empire, it was generally allowed considerable autonomy. It had a well-deserved reputation for extraordinarily competent rulers, though many of them were somewhat eccentric. In 1900 PD, the Empire was the only multi-system rival to the People's Republic of Haven in the Havenite Sector, and Haven did not want to turn against them. The Empire did not openly enter the First Havenite-Manticoran War, but their neutrality strongly favored Manticore, and they neglected to push matters in Silesia while the Star Kingdom was fighting the People's Republic. The reigning monarch in the early 20th Century PD was Emperor Gustav XI. The Empire's long-term policy of expanding into Silesia was completed when the Andermani and the Star Kingdom of Manticore agreed to buy off the Silesian Government and annex the confederacy. This agreement also cemented a military alliance against the Republic of Haven. ( , ) When the Republic and the Star Empire signed a peace treaty and military alliance following the revelation of the Mesan Alignment's centuries-long scheme to foment war between the two nations, the Andermani Empire opted out of the Grand Alliance on the advice of Honor Harrington and Queen Elizabeth III, in order to free the Andermani navy for potential independent action against the Alignment. ( ) Imperial Government The Andermani Empire was, in theory, an absolute monarchy. In fact, it practiced local self-government, and did not meddle with the customs of its subjects. There were also unofficial mechanisms for quietly removing a monarch, though those were only practiced in cases of absolute insanity. The foreign policy of the Andermani Empire was utterly under the control of the Emperor, who had the final decision in all foreign affairs. It is doubtful that many Andermani Emperors have had the time or the inclination to meddle excessively in economic or domestic matters, probably leaving such affairs to their ChancellorsA "Prime Minister" was mentioned in With one Stone. and other officials. The Andermani government included the following ministries: Ministry of State, Ministry of War, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of the Interior, and Ministry of Industry. ( ) Known Emperors * Gustav I, the founder of the Empire * Gustav VI, removed from the throne due to his insanityTried to appoint a rose bush as Chancellor. * Gustav VII, actually Gustav VI's older sister and direct successor * Gustav XI, Emperor in the 20th Century PD Society and Culture The Empire supported three languages. The official language was German, as a result of it being Gustav Anderman's native tongue. Chinese was reasonably common since it was Potsdam's original language. The Chinese ancestry was also evident in the names of many native Andermani citizens: many had traditional Chinese given names and traditional German family names. English was the lingua franca of the Post Diaspora era, thus being widely common in the Empire as well. ( ) Many Andermanis had Chinese first names, combined with a German family name. ( , ) Military * Imperial Andermani Navy * Imperial Andermani Army ** ''Totenkopf'' Hussars Regiment References Category:Star nations Category:Anderman Empire